OK the exams are upon us, the pressure is on, and we should have worked harder already, BUT it is not too late to make a big difference to the grade you can achieve. In this post there are a number of simple and quick things that you can do to make this year a succes and gain the results you need.
EXAM TECHNIQUE
At this late stage a key thing to study is exam technique so that you can make the most of the knowledge you already have. Below is a summary of exam techniques for A-Level Physics and Maths covering how to understand the question, gain information from the questions and data sheet, how to remind you of what you know and how to minimise mistakes.
FAST ANSWERS TO MPCS
Multiple choice questions are really challenging. Here is a summary of the points covered in my post.
- Read the question carfully noting and underline key points, particularly key words like NOT
- Eliminate impossible options
- Use the formula sheet to find any relevent equations
- Try not to use a calculator, you don’t need to get an exact answer
- Don’t get bogged down on any question.
- Make sure you give answers to every question, even if it means eliminating two options then 50:50 guess.
- For top grades remember that some question will take three times as long as others but you need all of them!
- Get familiar with mathematical tricks like spotting ratio questions and proprotionality.
For details read my post below:
IN-LINE ANSWER CHECKING
A great way to improve your grades is by quick in-line answer checking. What I mean by this is that most people answer a question or think they have, then rush on to the next question. The thought is that when they finish the paper they can go back and check all their answers. BAD CHOICE! The trouble with that approach is that you have to re-read the question, think what is required and then check you haven’t made a mistake. That approach is likely to making errors to correct answers.
A better way to check your answer is to spend just a few seconds, checking your answer before you move to the next question, while the question is still in your head. Here are the quick checks worth doing.
- Did I answer all of the question? It is easy to do all the hard work and miss out an item eg work out the x coordinate and forget to sub back in for y.
- Does the answer look reasonble, eg for physics is the speed less than the speed of light!
- Is the answer rounded to the appropriate number of significant figures.
- Have I entered the units eg m/s
Get used to doing “in-line” answer checking and it could gain you two whole grades. You only loose one mark on an arithmetic error but Ive had students who made silly mistakes on every question. I showed them how to do this and totally changed their grades.
See my blog below for full details of answer checking
ANSWERING LONG QUESTIONS
Long five mark Physics questions can be tackled with a few simple tips
- Read the question carefully all the way through including all sections.
- Re-read the first part of the question underlining key elements
- Find the relevent section of the formula sheet noting any data or equations that might be relevent
- Using the information in the question and the formula sheet sheet to jog our memory of the subject
- Form the answer in your head
- Write the answer giving the examiner their own words back to them. eg Q Why is an alpha emmitting isotope more dangerous when injested than a gamma source even tough gamma is more penetrating. Ans The reason alpha emitting isotope is more dangerous than a gamma is that the alpha particles are less pentrating because they interact much more with matter due to their size and double charge. That causes a great deal of damage in a small area of the body. While gamma particles can pass straight through causing minimal cell damage.
- After you written your answer to the first part check
For more details on how to tackle long complex questions click my post below:
ONE-OFF ONE TO ONE TUTORING
The pressure is on and you are stuck on a section of the syllabus that you just can’t understand and you are not getting the answers you need from the people you know. One very easy way that will save you a lot of time and give you the skill/knowledge you need would be a one-off online tutoring session.
Send me a Zoom meeting request and I guarantee to give you and answer to your problem
